JP5126254B2 - Image recording device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image recording apparatus in which a tube and a cable are extended from a carriage on which a recording head is mounted.

  2. Description of the Related Art An ink jet type image recording apparatus that performs image recording on a recording medium by ejecting ink based on an input signal is known. Ink jet systems include a system in which ink is guided to actuators such as piezoelectric elements and electrostrictive elements provided in a recording head, and ink droplets are ejected from nozzles by bending of the actuator in accordance with an input signal, or by local heating elements. There is known a system in which ink droplets are jetted under pressure by utilizing boiling of ink.

  An ink jet recording head is mounted on a carriage and reciprocated in a certain direction with respect to a recording medium such as recording paper. The carriage is driven and transmitted from a drive source such as a motor, and is guided by a guide shaft, a guide rail, and the like to reciprocate in a certain direction. When the carriage reciprocates, ink droplets are selectively ejected from the recording head onto the recording medium, and image recording is performed with the ink droplets that have landed on the recording medium.

  The recording head is supplied with ink from an ink cartridge or the like. As a method for supplying the ink, there is a method using a tube. The tube is a flow path for distributing ink from an ink cartridge provided at a position different from the recording head to the recording head, and has flexibility to follow the reciprocation of the carriage.

  The carriage is provided with a control board for controlling the operation of the recording head. The control board is operated based on a signal output from a main board provided in the image recording apparatus. The control board and the main board are connected by a flexible flat cable (hereinafter also referred to as “FFC”) so as to be able to transmit and receive electrical signals. This FFC also has flexibility to follow the reciprocation of the carriage (Patent Documents 1 and 2).

  An image recording apparatus may be test-printed at the time of manufacture or before shipment. In test printing, ink is supplied from the tube to the recording head, and a test pattern is actually printed on the recording paper. After the test printing is performed, a dummy ink cartridge is mounted so that ink does not leak from the tube after shipment (Patent Document 3).

JP 2003-175588 A JP 2002-321351 A JP 2007-268779 A

  The dummy ink cartridge described above has almost no need for use after the ink cartridge storing the ink is actually installed and the use is started. Therefore, the user often discards the dummy ink cartridge after starting to use the image recording apparatus. Since such discarded parts can be a waste of resources and an environmental burden, it is desirable that the number of discarded parts be as small as possible.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide means capable of reducing ink leakage from a tube after test printing without using a dummy ink cartridge.

(1) An image recording apparatus according to the present invention is mounted on a carriage that reciprocates in a first direction, which is a fixed direction with respect to a recording medium, and selectively ejects ink droplets from nozzles. A recording head, an ink storage section for storing ink, a tube extending from the carriage, and a tube through which ink supplied from the ink storage section to the recording head is circulated, and mounted on the carriage; Mounted on the carriage, a flow path member that forms an ink flow path between the recording head and the tube, a joint that connects the tube and the flow path member so that ink can flow, and the carriage A control board for controlling the recording head; and a cable extending from the carriage and electrically connected to the control board. In the carriage, the flow path member, the cable, and the tube are arranged in this order from the lower side to the upper side in the gravity direction . The tube is disposed so as to overlap the cable at an end portion on the side connected to the joint.

  Ink is supplied from the ink reservoir to the recording head through a tube and a flow path member. The operation of the recording head is controlled by the control board. Electrical signals are transmitted to and received from the control board through a cable. Ink droplets are selectively ejected from the recording head at a predetermined timing when the carriage reciprocates. The ink droplets land on the recording medium, whereby an image is recorded on the recording medium.

  In order to remove the ink remaining in the tube after the test printing is performed in the image recording device, the tube is removed from the joint, and one end of the removed tube is maintained on the upper side in the direction of gravity, thereby Depending on the difference, the ink in the tube may be returned to the ink reservoir. Since the tube is disposed on the upper side of the cable, it is not necessary to remove the cable from the carriage when removing the tube from the upper side in the gravity direction.

  (2) The joint may be arranged at a position where the cable is not arranged in the carriage.

  Since the joint and the cable are arranged at different positions, the tube can be easily attached to and detached from the joint while the cable is attached to the carriage.

  (3) The tube and the cable are extended from one end side in a second direction intersecting the first direction, and the flow path in the flow path member is along the first direction and the second direction. It may have a part.

  Since the tube and the cable are extended from the same end side of the carriage, the electronic components connected to the ink reservoir and the cable can be arranged on the same side. In addition, since the flow path of the flow path member has portions along the first direction and the second direction, the joint and the cable are arranged at different positions even when the flow path member and the cable are stacked in the direction of gravity. Is easy.

  (4) A plurality of the ink reservoirs are provided, a plurality of the tubes are provided corresponding to the ink reservoirs, and the joints are connected by arranging the tubes along the second direction. It may be done.

  Since a plurality of tubes are arranged along the second direction and joint-connected, there is a margin of space in the gravitational direction, which is one of the directions orthogonal to the first direction and the second direction. The device height can be lowered.

  According to the present invention, in the carriage, the flow path member, the cable, and the tube are arranged in this order from the lower side in the gravity direction to the upper side. Therefore, when removing the tube from the upper side in the gravity direction, there is no need to remove the cable from the carriage. As a result, it is easy to allow ink to flow out of the tube after test printing, and as a result, ink leakage from the tube after test printing can be reduced without using a dummy ink cartridge.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an external configuration of a multifunction machine 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the internal configuration of the multifunction machine 10. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the internal configuration of the printer unit 11. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an external configuration of the carriage 38. FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view showing each member mounted on the carriage 38. FIG. 6 is a plan view of the carriage 38 with the cover 31 removed. FIG. 7 is a plan view showing the carriage 38 with the cover 31, the head control board 52, and the FFC 53 removed.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings as appropriate. The embodiment described below is merely an example in which the present invention is embodied, and it is needless to say that the embodiment can be appropriately changed without departing from the gist of the present invention.

[Schematic configuration of MFP 10]
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the multifunction machine 10 is integrally provided with a printer unit 11 and a scanner unit 12, and has a print function, a scan function, a copy function, and a facsimile function. The printer unit 11 corresponds to the image recording apparatus according to the present invention. Functions other than the printer unit 11 are arbitrary. For example, the image recording apparatus according to the present invention may be implemented as a single-function printer that does not have the scanner unit 12 and does not have a scan function or a copy function.

  In the multifunction machine 10, a printer unit 11 is disposed on the lower side, and a scanner unit 12 is disposed on the upper side. The printer unit 11 is mainly connected to an external information device such as a computer, and records images and characters on a recording medium based on print data including image data and document data transmitted from the external information device. The scanner unit 12 is a so-called flat bed scanner.

  The multifunction machine 10 has a wide, thin, generally rectangular parallelepiped outer shape in which the dimensions in the width direction 101 and the depth direction 103 are larger than the dimensions in the height direction 102. The printer unit 11 is provided with an opening 13 on the front surface. Inside the opening 13, a paper feed tray 20 and a paper discharge tray 21 are provided. The recording paper stored in the paper supply tray 20 is fed into the printer unit 11 to record a desired image, and the recording paper after image recording is discharged to the paper discharge tray 21.

  An operation panel 14 is provided in the upper front portion of the multifunction machine 10. On the operation panel 14, a predetermined input for causing the printer unit 11 and the scanner unit 12 to perform a desired operation is performed. The operation panel 14 has a plurality of buttons for inputting, and a display for displaying the status of the multifunction machine 10 and displaying an error. Note that when an external information device is connected to the multifunction device 10, the multifunction device 10 also operates based on an instruction transmitted from the external information device through communication software such as a printer driver or a scanner driver.

[Printer 11]
As shown in FIG. 2, a paper feed tray 20 is provided on the bottom side of the multifunction machine 10. The paper discharge tray 21 is arranged in two upper and lower stages above the paper feed tray 20. The paper feed tray 20 and the paper discharge tray 21 are continuous by a paper transport path 23 so that a recording medium such as a recording paper can be transported. The recording paper accommodated in the paper feed tray 20 is guided by the paper conveyance path 23 so as to make a U-turn from the bottom to the top, and is conveyed to the image recording unit 24. After the image recording is performed by the image recording unit 24, The paper is discharged to the paper discharge tray 21.

  The paper feed tray 20 has a container shape with an upper opening, and a sheet-shaped recording medium such as a recording paper is accommodated in the inner space in a stacked state. The paper feed tray 20 can accommodate recording sheets of various sizes such as A4 size, B5 size, and postcard size, for example, A3 size or smaller.

  The paper discharge tray 21 has a tray shape, and the recording paper is discharged onto the top surface thereof. The paper discharge tray 21 is disposed on the front side of the apparatus with respect to the paper feed tray 20 in the depth direction 103. Therefore, on the back side of the apparatus, the paper discharge tray 21 does not exist above the paper feed tray 20.

  A paper feed roller 25 is provided on the back side of the paper feed tray 20. The paper feed roller 25 supplies the recording paper stacked on the paper feed tray 20 to the paper transport path 23. The paper feed roller 25 is driven by a motor (not shown) to rotate. The paper feed roller 25 is rotatably supported at the tip of the paper feed arm 26. The sheet feeding arm 26 can be rotated with the sheet feeding roller 25 side as a rotation tip side, and by this rotation, the sheet feeding roller 25 moves up and down in a direction in which the sheet feeding roller 25 contacts and separates from the sheet feeding tray 20. The paper feeding arm 26 is rotated downward by being biased by the weight of the paper feeding roller 25 or a spring, and moves upward according to the amount of recording paper stored in the paper feeding tray 20. As a result, the paper feed roller 25 contacts the uppermost recording paper in the paper feed tray 20. When the paper feeding roller 25 is rotated in this state, the uppermost recording paper is sent out to the paper transport path 23 by the frictional force between the roller surface of the paper feeding roller 25 and the recording paper.

  The paper transport path 23 extends upward from the back side of the apparatus of the paper feed tray 20, subsequently curves to the front side of the apparatus, and extends along the depth direction 103 from the back side to the front side of the multifunction machine 10. It passes through the unit 24 to the paper discharge tray 21. The sheet conveyance path 23 is composed of an outer guide surface and an inner guide surface that are opposed to each other at a predetermined interval except for a portion where the image recording unit 24 and the like are disposed. For example, a portion where the sheet conveyance path 23 is curved on the back side of the apparatus is constituted by an outer guide member 18 and an inner guide member 19 fixed to the apparatus frame or the like.

  The image recording unit 24 is mainly configured by a recording head 39 mounted on a carriage 38 and a platen 42 arranged to face each other at a predetermined interval. The detailed configuration of the image recording unit 24 will be described later.

  A pair of transport rollers 60 and a pinch roller are provided upstream of the image recording unit 24 in the transport direction. In FIG. 2, the pinch roller does not appear hidden behind other members, but the pinch roller is disposed in a press-contact state below the conveying roller 60. The transport roller 60 is driven by a motor (not shown) and rotates. The transport roller 60 and the pinch roller sandwich the recording paper transported through the paper transport path 23 and transport it onto the platen 42.

  A pair of paper discharge rollers 62 and a spur are provided downstream of the image recording unit 24 in the transport direction. In FIG. 2, although the spur does not appear hidden behind other members, the spur is disposed in a press-contact state on the upper side of the paper discharge roller 62. The paper discharge roller 62 is driven by a motor (not shown) to rotate. The paper discharge roller 62 and the spur nipping the recorded recording paper and transport it to the paper discharge tray 21.

[Schematic Configuration of Image Recording Unit 24]
As shown in FIG. 2, the carriage 38 mounts an ink jet recording head 39. As shown in FIG. 3, the recording head 39 includes cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y) through an ink tube 41 from an ink cartridge disposed independently of the recording head 39 in the multifunction machine 10. -Black (Bk) ink is supplied. While the carriage 38 is reciprocated, each color ink is selectively ejected as fine ink droplets from the nozzles of the recording head 39, whereby image recording is performed on the recording paper conveyed on the platen 42. Note that FIG. 3 does not show each ink cartridge that stores ink of each color, but the ink cartridge corresponds to the ink storage unit in the present invention. The ink tube 41 corresponds to the tube in the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a pair of guide rails 43 and 44 convey the recording paper at a predetermined distance in the recording paper conveyance direction (from the upper side to the lower side in FIG. 3) on the upper side of the paper conveyance path 23. It extends in a direction intersecting with the direction (left-right direction in FIG. 3, width direction 101). The guide rails 43 and 44 are provided in the casing of the printer unit 11 and constitute a part of a frame that supports each member constituting the printer unit 11. The carriage 38 is placed so as to straddle the guide rails 43 and 44, and the carriage 38 can slide in the extending direction of the guide rails 43 and 44 (left and right direction in FIG. 3, width direction 101). The width direction 101 corresponds to the first direction in the present invention.

  The edge 45 on the upstream side in the transport direction of the guide rail 44 is bent at a substantially right angle upward. The carriage 38 carried on the guide rails 43 and 44 slidably holds the edge 45 by a holding member such as a roller pair. Thus, the carriage 38 is positioned with respect to the recording paper conveyance direction (the direction from the upper side to the lower side in FIG. 3, the depth direction 103), and intersects the recording paper conveyance direction (in the present embodiment, orthogonal). It is possible to slide in the direction of That is, the carriage 38 is slidably supported on the guide rails 43 and 44 and reciprocates in a direction intersecting the recording sheet conveyance direction with the edge 45 of the guide rail 44 as a reference.

  A belt driving mechanism 46 is provided on the upper surface of the guide rail 44. In the belt driving mechanism 46, an endless annular timing belt 49 with teeth on the inner side is stretched between a driving pulley 47 and a driven pulley 48 provided near both ends in the width direction 101 of the paper conveyance path 23, respectively. Being done. A driving force is input to the shaft of the driving pulley 47 from a motor (not shown). As the driving pulley 47 rotates, the timing belt 49 moves circumferentially.

  Although not shown in FIG. 3, the carriage 38 is connected to the timing belt 49 on the bottom surface side. When the timing belt 49 moves circumferentially, the carriage 38 reciprocates on the guide rails 43 and 44 with the edge 45 as a reference. The recording head 39 mounted on the carriage 38 also reciprocates in the width direction 101 of the paper transport path 23 together with the carriage 38.

  A platen 42 is disposed below the sheet conveyance path 23 so as to face the recording head 39. The platen 42 is disposed over the central portion through which the recording paper passes in the range in which the carriage 38 reciprocates. The width of the platen 42 is sufficiently wider than the maximum width of the recording paper that can be used in the printer unit 11. The recording paper supported on the upper surface of the platen 42 is kept at a constant distance from the recording head 39. Ink droplets ejected from the recording head 39 land on the recording paper.

  Although not shown in FIG. 3, the ink cartridges containing the respective color inks are mounted on the cartridge mounting portion of the printer unit 11. Four ink tubes 41 corresponding to the respective color inks are routed from the cartridge mounting portion to the carriage 38. The ink tube 41 drawn around the carriage 38 supplies each color ink to the recording head 39 mounted on the carriage 38. The ink tube 41 changes its posture following the reciprocation of the carriage 38.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the ink tube 41 and the FFC 53 are fixed to the clip 36 and extend to the carriage 38. The FFC 53 transmits electrical signals between the control board of the multifunction machine 10 and the head control board 52 of the recording head 39. Although the control board is arranged on the front side of the apparatus from the clip 36, it does not appear in each figure. The FFC 53 is in the form of a thin band in which a plurality of conductive wires that transmit electrical signals are covered with a synthetic resin film such as a polyester film and insulated.

  The FFC 53 has flexibility to bend following the reciprocation of the carriage 38. One end side of the FFC 53 fixed to the carriage 38 is electrically connected to a head control board 52 mounted on the carriage 38. The other end side of the FFC 53 fixed to the clip 36 is further extended to the control board and electrically connected. The portion of the FFC 53 that is curved in a substantially U shape is not fixed to any member, and changes its posture following the reciprocation of the carriage 38, similar to the ink tube 41.

[Carriage 38]
4 and 5, the carriage 38 includes a carriage main body 30 that supports the recording head 39, the flow path member 50, the joint 51, the head control board 52, and the FFC 53, and a cover 31 that covers the carriage main body 31 from above. And have. The carriage body 31 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape with the upper side opened, and the cover 31 can be assembled so as to cover the opening. The recording head 39, the flow path member 50, the joint 51, the head control board 52, and the FFC 53 are accommodated in the internal space of the carriage body 31. 5 shows a state in which the recording head 39 is accommodated in the internal space of the carriage body 31. FIG. Further, in the following description, when simply referred to as “upper side” or “lower side”, the direction in which gravity is applied is expressed as downward.

  In the carriage main body 31, a flow path member 50 is disposed above the recording head 39. The flow path member 50 is roughly divided into a flow path section 55 that mainly forms a flow path and a tank section 56 that stores ink. The flow path portion 55 has a thin plate shape. In the flow path portion 55, four introduction ports 57 into which ink of each color is introduced are formed in a line. Each introduction port 57 is opened upward in the flow path portion 55. The introduction ports 57 are arranged along a depth direction 103 orthogonal to the width direction 101 in which the carriage 38 reciprocates.

  In the flow path portion 55, four flow paths 58 are provided corresponding to the introduction ports 57. As indicated by broken lines in FIG. 7, each flow path 58 extends from each introduction port 57 in the width direction 101, is bent at a right angle, extends in the depth direction 103, and heads toward the tank portion 56. In each flow channel 58, a portion along the width direction 101 is referred to as a first portion 71, and a portion along the depth direction 103 is referred to as a second portion 72. The depth direction 103 corresponds to the second direction in the present invention.

  The tank unit 56 is divided into four rooms corresponding to the four flow paths 58. Each room can store ink of each color independently. Ink can flow into each room from each flow path 58. Although not shown in each figure, each room of the tank unit 56 is connected to the recording head 39 so that each color ink can be circulated, and ink discharged from each room of the tank unit 56 flows into the recording head 39. To do.

  The flow path member 50 is assembled to the carriage body 31 so that the flow path section 55 and the tank section 56 are aligned in the depth direction 103. The flow path portion 55 is disposed on the guide rail 43 side that is the front side of the apparatus, and the tank portion 56 is disposed on the guide rail 44 side that is the back side of the apparatus.

  In the carriage body 31, a joint 51 is disposed above the flow path portion 55 of the flow path member 50. Although not shown in the drawings, four openings that can be connected to the introduction ports 57 of the flow path member 50 are formed on the lower surface of the joint 51. The joint 51 is a member having a long direction in which four openings are arranged in a row. The joint 51 is assembled to the flow path member 50 in a state where the long direction is along the depth direction 103. The channel member 50 is provided with two pins 65 and 66 protruding upward. By inserting the pins 65 and 66, the joint 51 is positioned with respect to the flow path member 50.

  As shown in FIG. 6, a connection portion 59 connected to each ink tube 41 is provided on the upper surface side of the joint 51. Four connecting portions 59 are provided in a line corresponding to the four ink tubes 41. Each connecting portion 59 has a circular tube shape that can be inserted into the internal space of the ink tube 41. Each connecting portion 59 is arranged so that the axial direction of the circular tube shape is along the width direction 101. The four connection portions 59 are arranged in a line along the depth direction 103. By connecting each ink tube 41 to each connection portion 59, ink can flow from the ink tube 41 to the recording head 39 through the flow path member 55.

  The joint 51 is stacked on the upper side of the first portion 71 of the flow path portion 55 in the flow path member 50 and is not stacked on the upper side of the second portion 72 when assembled with the flow path member 50. . As will be described later, the FFC 53 is disposed on the upper side of the second portion 72 of the flow path portion 55. In other words, the joint 51 is disposed on the upper side of the flow path member 50 at a position where the FFC 53 is not disposed. Each ink tube 41 connected to the joint 51 extends along the width direction 101 from the front side of the apparatus in the depth direction 103 of the carriage 38. The front side of the carriage 38 in the depth direction 103 corresponds to one end side in the second direction intersecting the first direction in the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 6, in the carriage main body 31, a head control substrate 52 is disposed above the tank portion 56 of the flow path member 50. The head control board 52 is a board that controls the operation of the recording head 39, and is electrically connected to the recording head 39. The head control board 52 is obtained by assembling various electronic elements on a printed board, but description of the circuit configuration of the head control board 52 and the like is omitted here.

  The head control board 52 is electrically connected to the control board described above by the FFC 53. The control board controls the operation of the multifunction machine 10. Based on the electrical signal output from the control board, the head control board 52 outputs an electrical signal such as a drive signal to control the operation of the recording head 39.

  One end of the FFC 53 is electrically connected to the end of the head control board 52 in the depth direction 103 on the front side of the apparatus. The FFC 53 extends linearly to the upper side of the flow path portion 55 of the flow path member 50, and extends from the apparatus front side in the depth direction 103 of the carriage 38 to the outside. On the front side of the apparatus in the depth direction 103 in the carriage 38, the FFC 53 is appropriately bent and extends in the same direction as the ink tube 41, that is, in the width direction 101.

  On the upper side of the flow path portion 55 of the flow path member 50, the FFC 53 is on the upper side of the second portion 72 and extends along the depth direction 103. Further, the FFC 53 is disposed on the upper side of the flow path portion 55 so that the thin front and back surfaces are parallel to the upper surface of the flow path portion 55. Further, as described above, the joint 50 is not disposed above the second portion 72 in the flow path portion 55. In such an arrangement, the FFC 53 is at a lower position in the height direction 102 than the connection portion 59 in the joint 51. Therefore, the FFC 53 is disposed above the flow path portion 55 of the flow path member 50, and the ink tube 41 connected to the connection portion 59 is disposed above the FFC 53.

[Test printing]
After the multifunction device 10 is manufactured in a factory, test printing is performed. The test print is an inspection for determining whether the printer unit 11 has a predetermined reference print quality. When test printing is performed, ink cartridges of each color are mounted on the printer unit 11. The recording head 39 is supplied with ink of each color from the ink cartridge of each color through the ink tube 41 and the flow path member 50. The operation of the recording head 39 is controlled by the head control board 52. Electrical signals are transmitted to and received from the control board through the FFC 53 to the head control board 52. From the recording head 39, ink droplets are selectively ejected onto the recording paper at a predetermined timing when the carriage 38 reciprocates. As the ink droplets land on the recording paper, a test pattern is recorded on the recording paper.

  After the test printing is completed, the multi-function device 10 determined to have a predetermined reference print quality is packed for shipping. At the time of packing, the ink remaining in the ink tube 41 is also removed. Further, the ink cartridge in which the ink remains is removed from the printer unit 11.

  In order to remove the ink staying in the ink tube 41, each ink tube 41 is removed from the joint 51, and one end of each extracted ink tube 41, that is, the end connected to the joint 50 is more gravitational than the ink cartridge. By maintaining the upper side in the direction, the ink in the ink tube 41 is returned to the ink cartridge due to the water head difference from the ink cartridge.

  As described above, in the carriage 38, each ink tube 41 is arranged above the FFC 53. Therefore, when the cover 31 of the carriage 38 is removed and each ink tube 41 is removed from the joint 51 from above in the gravity direction. There is no need to remove the FFC 53 connected to the head control board 52 from the carriage body 31.

  After the ink in the ink tube 41 is returned to the ink cartridge, the ink cartridge is removed from the printer unit 11. The ink tube 41 is again connected to the joint 51, and the cover 31 is assembled to the carriage body 31.

  The operation of removing the ink remaining in the ink tube 41 as described above may be performed in the same manner even after test printing performed after repair of the multifunction machine 10.

[Operational effects of this embodiment]
According to the embodiment described above, in the carriage 38, the flow path member 50, the FFC 53, and the ink tube 41 are arranged in this order from the lower side to the upper side in the gravity direction. There is no need to remove the FFC 53 from the carriage 38. As a result, the ink remaining in the ink tube 41 after the test printing can be easily discharged to the ink cartridge. As a result, the ink tube 41 can be discharged from the ink tube 41 without using a dummy ink cartridge at the time of inventory or transportation. Ink leakage can be reduced.

  Further, in the carriage 38, the joint 51 and the FFC 53 are arranged at different positions in the plan view shown in FIG. 6, so that the ink tube 41 can be easily attached to and detached from the joint 51 while the FFC 53 is attached to the carriage 38. It is.

  Further, since the ink tube 41 and the FFC 53 are extended from the same end side of the carriage 38 in the depth direction 103, the ink cartridge and the control board connected to the FFC 53 can be arranged on the same apparatus front side. In addition, since the flow path 55 of the flow path member 50 includes the first portion 71 along the width direction 101 and the second portion 72 along the depth direction 103, the flow path member 50 and the FFC 53 are stacked in the gravity direction. However, it is easy to arrange the joint 51 and the FFC 53 at different positions in the plan view shown in FIG.

  Further, since the four ink tubes 41 are arranged along the depth direction 103 and connected to the joint 51, there is a space in the gravity direction (height direction 102) perpendicular to the width direction 101 and the depth direction 103. As a result, the device height around the carriage 38 can be lowered.

11: Printer unit (image recording device)
38 ... Carriage 39 ... Recording head 41 ... Ink tube (tube)
50 ... Flow path member 51 ... Joint 52 ... Head control board (control board)
53 ... FFC (cable)

Claims (4)

A carriage that reciprocates in a first direction that is a fixed direction with respect to the recording medium;
A recording head mounted on the carriage and selectively ejecting ink droplets from nozzles;
An ink reservoir for storing ink;
A tube that extends from the carriage and through which ink supplied from the ink reservoir to the recording head is circulated;
A flow path member mounted on the carriage and forming an ink flow path between the recording head and the tube;
A joint that connects the tube and the flow path member so that ink can flow; and
A control board mounted on the carriage for controlling the recording head;
A cable extending from the carriage and electrically connected to the control board;
In the carriage, the flow path member, the cable, and the tube are arranged in this order from the lower side to the upper side in the direction of gravity .
The image recording apparatus , wherein the tube is disposed so as to overlap the cable at an end connected to the joint .   The image recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the joint is disposed in the carriage at a position where the cable is not disposed. The tube and the cable are extended from one end side in a second direction intersecting the first direction,
The image recording apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the flow path in the flow path member has portions along the first direction and the second direction. A plurality of the ink reservoirs are provided,
A plurality of the tubes are provided corresponding to the ink reservoirs,
4. The image recording apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the joint is one in which the tubes are arranged and connected along the second direction. 5.

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